I remember the Evgeniy (Eugene) Lushevskiy disappearance too. I went up the Ski Hut Trail that very day (Halloween Day 2004) but had to turn back at the second to last tree to the summit because of strong winds and fading daylight (it was almost 4:00pm). It was my first time hiking in the snow--I should have turned around much sooner. To this day I still wonder if I would have seen Eugene up there if I had made it to the summit. I returned the same way I came up and saw no one coming up. The snow was pretty powdery along the Ski Hut Trail.

Reports are he made it to the summit at some point, made a campfire and filmed the sunrise on Monday morning (Nov 1). The video shows him walking around until about 10am that morning and then he disappeared.

I was also on the mountain when RJ Secor fell down the bowl. I went up the bowl and just as I reached the summit, RJ was leaving and heading back down. I didn't know who he was, but he stood out because he was wearing yellow overall type pants. Conditions were a little icy at the top of the bowl but the snow was relatively soft the rest of the way. I even have a video of someone glissading down the bowl with no axe at all. I remember one guy went up the bowl in just shorts, t-shirt and a branch for a hiking stick. I descended the east side of the bowl and later saw the SAR helicopter circling above. At the Ski Hut, I heard what had happened.

Jan 2004 was also a rough time for SoCal mountains. I think 6 or 7 people died just that month. Two died on Baldy due to slips on ice.

Choice of clothing on steep climbs is something to consider. Everything slides on ice but something other than smooth nylon would be better for steep compact snow. Perhaps a fleece vest as an outer layer. Someday a manufacturer will come up with a slide resistant garment. It will still be best to approach steep snow with the proper gear, training and attitude.

Wow, that is crazy!! We did two different chutes on Thursday, both being pretty icy/firm. You just have to be careful right now. We then descended part of the true backbone and some sections there were sketchy as well.

Usually the snow is much softer during the day due to sun exposure but right now, it just remains firm. Must be too cold and windy.